The rugby year has not pegged out just yet but, even before the first of the thunderous 1872 Cup clashes between Glasgow and Edinburgh, the sport seems to have lapsed into reflective mode.

So, too, your correspondent, croaking towards 2014’s finishing line in a clapped-out but generally contented frame of mind. So when the stockings have been hung, I shall allow myself a few moments of rheumy-eyed and entirely random reflection on what made this twelve-month memorable .

herald – Donald Cowey

The Player

Tricky one this, for Jonny Gray made an impressively powerful pitch to be considered Scotland’s outstanding performer over the past year. However, if that award has to be handed out then I’d give it instead to Alex Dunbar, the Glasgow Warriors centre. Throughout 2014, Dunbar displayed a kind of quiet and self-contained excellence. At the end of the year, it is devilishly difficult to think of a single occasion when the 24-year-old farmer’s lad from Lockerbie did anything wrong.

The Farewell

The last day of May was set up to be the most poignant in the sport’s history as both Brian O’Driscoll and Jonny Wilkinson had announced that they would take their leave of rugby then. Fittingly, their teams, Leinster and Toulon, were involved in domestic finals that day, with Leinster taking on Glasgow in the PRO12’s final game in Dublin and Toulon clashing with Castres in Paris for the Top 14 title. Two giants, arguably the best the northern hemisphere has produced in the last 20 years, but they left in very different circumstances. Although Leinster won, O’Driscoll lasted less than 10 minutes in his game. Wilkinson went out in more style, kicking 15 points as Toulon won 18-10.

The Team

So many candidates, but one has stuck in the mind more than any other. The Clan, based in Kilmarnock, is Scotland’s first unified rugby club, in which players with learning disabilities play alongside non-disabled players. They played an exhibition game at half-time of Scotland’s clash with Tonga at Rugby Park last month and it was a wonderfully uplifting experience. In June, the Clan won their Tri-Nations tournament against similarly constituted sides from England and Wales, and they will represent Scotland in the inaugural unified World Cup in Yorkshire next August.

The Coach

Despite what he had achieved at Clermont-Auvergne, there were justifiable concerns over the appointment of Vern Cotter as Scotland’s head coach, mostly due to his complete lack of experience at international level. Yet the New Zealander has shown he is to the Test manor born with his astute stewardship of the national team’s fortunes. After the antics of Scott Johnson, his down-to-earth manner has also been a blessed relief. With a record of five victories in seven outings, Cotter has won over the doubters.

The Event

I had huge reservations about the Commonwealth Games sevens at Ibrox. I feared that the occasion would fall flat on its face, a stern contrast to the joyousness of all the other Games events. Instead, it soared. The stadium was packed for two days and the atmosphere was superb. Scotland, bolstered by a handful of top names, put in a decent and defiant display, and it ended splendidly when South Africa took gold, beating a strangely one-paced New Zealand side 17-12 in the final. A wonderful, exuberant experience from start to finish.

The Game

Glasgow put together an astonishing streak of PRO12 victories between March and May, winning nine games on the bounce. But it was the last of them, their 16-15 semi-final win against Munster at Scotstoun, that will live longest in the memory. In front of a capacity 10,000 crowd, and against a team well-versed in the art of closing out close contests, the Warriors showed raw spirit, tenacity and pride. Al Kellock and Jonny Gray, the Glasgow locks, were immense that night. Gregor Townsend’s team would lose in the final to Leinster two weeks later, but this was the match in which they came of age.

The Unluckiest

Has to be Grant Gilchrist. No sooner had Edinburgh’s gentle giant been appointed Scotland captain for the November Tests than he broke his arm against Lyon in a Challenge Cup game. Worse still, Jonny and Richie Gray filled the second row so well that Gilchrist has a job on his hands to get back in the side for the Six Nations. Way too harsh on one of the sport’s good guys.

The Atmosphere

Nothing in world rugby matches the febrile backdrop of a French club game, especially when the stakes are high. But even by French standards, Clermont Auvergne’s Stade Marcel Michelin is something special. In March, I was there to watch Clermont take on Toulon, come from behind to win 22-16, overtake the league leaders and racking up their 74th home win on the trot. Quite simply, the most electrifying experience of the year.